


A World Apart

by kyryn



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Blindshipping, Egypt, Fluff, Language Barrier, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Puzzleshipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2020-04-23 22:31:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19160296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyryn/pseuds/kyryn
Summary: Could you leave everything behind to follow your lover on blind faith?





	A World Apart

_I’m here._

Atem smiled down at the cellphone clutched tightly in his hands. He could feel his heartbeat begin to quicken within his chest while his eyes scanned the message repeatedly. His mind was having trouble comprehending the reality of the two simple words laid out across his screen.

He had longed for months to see those words, and the time had finally come.

_Come find me at the arrivals gate._

Atem could feel a hand grasp onto his shoulder gently after he sent the text message. His deep purple eyes looked away from the phone screen, connecting with Mana’s concerned eyes. She gave Atem a small nod, a smile passing onto her features. Mana didn’t have to speak in order to understand Atem’s emotions. They had been best friends since they were little kids, they could easily understand each other.

“His flight just landed in Cairo,” Atem spoke finally. He watched the concerned expression in her eyes change into a glisten of excitement. She clasped her hands together in front of her, the smile on her face growing even more.

“So that means… We’ll get to meet him soon?!” Mana's tone rose a few levels of volume in excitement, earning her a few glares from the people around them.

Atem shushed her quietly, attempting to remind the excitable young woman that they were currently in a busy airport. She apologized in return just before Atem stepped away from her side, forcing the hand to fall away from his shoulder. He navigated through the crowd in order to find the arrivals board. Atem searched for a particular number, his breath hitching in his throat when he spotted it.

_Finally._

He could feel a wave of mixed emotions wash over him when he saw the words “arrived” flashing on the screen. It confirmed the reality of the text message that Atem had received only moments prior. The reality Atem wished so desperately for every night was finally about to exist.

Yugi was in Egypt with him.

His mind was still attempting to wrap itself around the reality that Yugi would be within his reach soon. After all the past few months enjoying gaming together online and finding love across international lines, Yugi was finally within the same country as him. It wasn’t permanent, of course, but it still meant that Atem could hug and kiss his long distance boyfriend.

It felt like a miracle in his mind. The first time that Atem messaged Yugi, he wasn’t even expecting a friendship to blossom with the shy Japanese male. However, the friendship began and grew stronger than Atem could ever imagine before it blossomed into the budding relationship. Even if it was painful to have his partner in Japan while he resided in Egypt, he knew that he wouldn’t give up on Yugi for anything.

“Atem…?”

The soft-spoken word broke Atem out of his reminiscing. His body turned around quickly in the direction of the voice, Atem’s heart skipping a beat when his eyes laid on the voice’s owner. It took a few seconds to process exactly who was standing in front of him, shyly picking at the bottom of his navy blue coat with eyes darting to and from Atem’s form.

“Yugi…” Atem murmured breathlessly. He watched Yugi’s eyes widen, a blush spreading across his porcelain skin while his mind attempted to figure out words to respond to Atem with.

The Egyptian male didn’t wait for a response from Yugi, however. He closed the small gap between them, wrapping his arms around Yugi’s slightly smaller frame. At first, Yugi’s body was rigid in Atem’s touch but it only took a few seconds for the reality to hit the Japanese male. His body relaxed, his arms wrapping themselves around Atem’s muscular frame, his head laid against his chest.

Yugi could faintly hear Atem’s faster than normal heartbeat, a small chuckle leaving his lips. He knew that Atem always liked to play it cool and over the weeks leading up to his flight to Cairo, he had teased Atem more than once about the possibility of being nervous when they met. Despite Atem’s objections, Yugi knew deep down that they’d both be feeling an ocean of emotions upon meeting each other for the first time.

Atem pulled away from the embrace slightly but kept his arms wrapped around Yugi’s body. He wasn’t ready to let go yet - not after he was finally able to hold Yugi in his arms. It seemed like Yugi wasn’t either though. His arms stayed locked around Atem’s waist, refusing to let go of the person he had travelled halfway across the world on blind faith to meet.

“A-Atem… Who is she?” Yugi asked softly when he found his voice again, a small stutter clinging to his words. Atem glanced over his shoulder, chuckling softly when he saw Mana rocking back and forth on her heels, minding her own business until she was acknowledged.

“Honestly, I forgot she was here,” Atem answered truthfully. Yugi scowled at him slightly for the remark, earning another chuckle from the slightly taller male. “That is Mana, I’m sure that you remember all the stories about her.”

“Of course I do!” Yugi said in a slightly louder tone than the hushed one he had been using. He was impressed. He knew that Mana was absolutely the closest person to Atem besides him. He hadn’t been expecting Atem to allow the two to meet so quickly.

“Can you give me a second?” Atem asked. Yugi nodded slowly, allowing his arms to fall away from Atem’s body despite his inner thoughts urging him to hold on. Atem did the same, stepping away from him before turning to Mana.

When Atem stepped away, Yugi reached up to finally wipe away the tears that had formed upon seeing Atem. He couldn’t control his emotions when he first laid eyes on him, and he certainly couldn’t after sharing an embrace with him. The whole scene was surreal, almost feeling like a dream to the emotional young male. This was absolutely everything that Yugi had wanted for months.

He was here, in Cairo, with the person that he had managed to fall in love with from a distance.

Yugi could hear Atem begin to speak with Mana in a low tone. He couldn’t understand a single word of the conversation spoken in Arabic but he could see Mana’s expressions change. He watched her eyes widen, glancing over at Yugi and forcing the male to look away briefly. When he looked back, Yugi could see Mana’s eyes glowing up excitement, the young woman practically bouncing up and down.

“Yugi…” Atem’s deep voice penetrated Yugi’s hearing, capturing his attention. “Mana doesn’t speak Japanese, and her English is limited. Will you be okay with that?”

“Of course!” Yugi responded immediately and without thought. Yugi didn’t need to think about the answer though. He knew that there would be a language barrier when visiting Atem, but he knew they could overcome it. There was more ways to speak to someone than just vocally.

“Thank you,” Atem responded with a relieved sigh.

Atem had never told Yugi but he had grown worried about Yugi’s capabilities to converse - especially with Mana. He wanted his best friend and his boyfriend to get along, but when both Yugi and Mana spoke limited English… He didn’t know how well that would go. But Yugi was a creative person. He knew that if anyone could figure out how to communicate beyond a language barrier, it would be him.

“Good morning, Mana!” Yugi said enthusiastically. He was feeling more comfortable now, the stutter disappearing from his voice while his body remained relaxed. He could be his usual cheerful self, giving a deep bow to Mana.

Mana gasped softly but understood the gesture, returning the bow to Yugi. She had learned quite a bit about Japanese culture from all the stories that Atem had mentioned to her over the course of their friendship. Atem always did have a fascination with Japan, claiming from a young age that he would learn Japanese and find them a life together within Japan. But she never imagined he would find a partner from there before any of that happened.

Atem stepped closer to Yugi, offering his hand to the slightly shorter male. Yugi glanced down at it, the nervous feeling beginning to return to him. He reached out, his hand shaking slightly. Yugi’s fingertips brushed the palm of Atem’s hand before lacing their fingers together, Atem pulling Yugi a slight bit closer to him.

“It’s okay, we’re together now,” Atem said to him in a gentle tone.

He knew Yugi was nervous and he couldn’t blame him. Yugi was in an entirely new country, completely alone with a man he had only known over the Internet. He had come to Cairo on the blind faith that an online relationship could work in real life - and Atem was determined to show him that it could.

The strength and faith of their bond would see them through anything.

**Author's Note:**

> I've tossed around this idea for a chaptered fic but I wanted to give the idea a try in a one-shot first! This story follows the prompt of "blind faith" from PuzzleJune.
> 
> It's much shorter and to the point from some of my other works, but I wanted to explore the emotions in a long distance relationship. I'm sure many people (myself included) have been in one and understand the feelings of meeting them for the first time. Especially when you're with someone from another country where there might be a language barrier.
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed <3


End file.
